Restorative Justice: A Maori Perspective

This paper is a response to Belgrave (1995) and describes the historical and current Maori justice system. An option to strengthen the restorative process embedded in the Maori community is proposed. Issues regarding the adapting of past practices to principles of restorative justice are discussed from the Maori perspective. Recommendations for the essential elements of a new system based on restorative processes are listed. Includes descriptive overviews of indigenous justice models from North America and Australia. Specific warnings against mistakes of other alternative dispute resolution models are appended.